Work guide and doctor device for applicator roll



April 1967 F. H. G. LESTER ETAL 3,315,636

WORK GUIDE AND DOCTOR DEVICE FOR APPLICATOR ROLL Filed Feb. 12, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 F l G. l

, FIG. 2

5O INVENTORS FRANK H. G. LESTER JOHN J. DECOULOS ATTORNEYS April 25, 1967 F. H. G. LESTER ETAL 3,

WORK GUIDE AND DOCTOR DEVICE FOR APPLICATOR ROLL Filed Feb. 12, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .1 5 I I w w sg I FIG. 4

MMW

ATTOR N EYS April 1967 i=1 H G. LESTER ETAL 3,315,636

WORK GUIDE AND DOCTOR DEVICE FOR APPLICATOR ROLL Filed Feb, 12, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTORS' FRANK H. G. LESTER JOHN J. DECOULOS ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,315,636 WORK GUIDE AND DOCTOR DEVICE FOR ARPLICATOR ROLL Frank H. G. Lester, Beverly, and John J. Decoulos, Peabody, Mass., assignors to Boston Machine Works Company, Lynn, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Feb. 12, 1963, Ser. No. 257,892 7 Claims. (Cl. 118-246) This invention relates to improvements in cementing machines, that is, to machines having a coating roll which is partially submerged in a pool of liquid adhesive in a trough and is power-driven so as to apply a film of adhesive cement to a surface of an article such as an insole or outsole for a shoe. The thickness of the film carried by the roll up from the pool and presented to the work pieces which are fed one after another over the roll is controlled by the spacing between the surface of the roll and an edge of a member such as a feed table which is close to the rising side of the revolving roll and is adjustable toward and from the surface of the roll to decrease or increase the thickness of the film which is carried to the top of the roll. Successive lots of insoles, for example, which are to be coated may require different thicknesses of film. It is an object of the invention to provide means whereby the film thickness can quickly and easily be adjusted without interrupting the operation of the machine, the adjusting mechanism being constructed to prevent leakage of cement therethrough from the pool in the trough.

The invention is embodied in a machine having no top roll above the coating roll. Spring fingers are therefore provided to bear on the feed table over which the work pieces are advanced to the coating roll. The ends of these fingers should be as near as possibleto the edge of the film-controlling edge of the table but not beyond such edge as the fingers must not be allowed to touch the cement carried on the roll. To avoid the necessity of separately adjusting the fingers each time the table is adjusted toward or from the roll, the fingers and table are mounted on a common frame so that they move as a unit when adjustments of the clearance between the table and roll are made, the relative positions of the edge of the table and the ends of the fingers remaining unchanged.

For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following description thereof, and to the drawings, of which: I

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of mechanism embodying the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary sectional view of the same on the line 22 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 3 is a portion of FIGURE 2 shown on a larger scale;

FIGURE 4 is a front elevation of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of the same.

The apparatus shown on the drawings comprises a re ceptacle secured to a vertical plate 12 which is part of a suitable supporting frame (not shown). A pool 14 of liquid cement is maintained at a constant level by means well known in the art. A cement-applying roll 16 is journalled in the receptacle 10 and is driven by its shaft 18 which is connected to suitable power means (not shown). The roll 16 rotates ona horizontal axis and a portion of the roll is immersed in the pool 14 so that a film of cement is carried up on the surface of the roll to be applied to work pieces which are fed across the top of the roll from the surface of a table 20 an edge 22 of which is near the surface of the roll. The margin of the table top next to the edge 22 is beveled as shown in FIG- URE 3. The clearance between the edge 22 and the surface of the roll 10 determines the thickness of the film 3,315,636 Patented Apr. 25, 1967 of cement which reaches the top of the rotating roll, assuming that the liquid cement is viscous enough to form a free film on the roll thicker than desired for application to work pieces.

As there is no top roll to press the work pieces on the coating roll 16 as they pass over it, spring fingers 24 are arranged to press down on the work pieces as they pass from the table 20 to the roll. For effective operation it is desirable that the ends of these spring fingers bear on the beveled margin of the table as near the edge 22 of the table 20 as possible without extending far enough to touch the film of cement carried up by the roll. The fingers 24 may conveniently be integral with a sheet 26 of spring steel, the sheet being notched as at 28 to form the fingers 24. For firmness and flexibility, two sets of fingers 24 are provided, one set being superposed on the other. The ends of the fingers bear on the table 20 and yield upward when work pieces are pushed across the table to the roll. To prevent undesired marking of the work pieces by the fingers which press thereon, a thin sheet 30 of a synthetic resin, e.g., nylon, is supported under the fingers 24 so that actual contact is between the work pieces and the sheet 30. The spring sheets 26 and nylon sheet 30 are secured to a flat on an arbor 32 (FIGURE 2) which is supported between centers 34, 36 which are clamped in split blocks 38, 40 respectively. The center 34 is at the end of a short shaft 42 and has a pin 44 engaging in a notch 46 in the end of the arbor 32 so that the shaft 42 and arbor 32 turn together to adjust the pressure of the fingers 24 on the table 20. To adjust the pressure of the fingers, the clamping screw 48 in the block 38 is backed off to release the shaft 42. The shaft is then rocked slightly to change the pressure of the fingers as desired, and the screw is tightened to clamp the shaft in its adjusted position. For convenience in adjusting at once to a desired pressure, a scale device 50 is mounted on a side of the block 38 in a position to cooperate with an index 52 on the shaft 42.

The blocks 38, 40 which carry the arbor 32 and fingers 24 are mounted directly on the table 20. As a result of this, the table and fingers move as a unit and any adjustment of the table toward or from the surface of the roll 16 to change the thickness of the film of cement brought to the top of the roll does not affect the relative positions of the fingers and the table so that no additional adjustment of the fingers is required after an adjustment of the table has been made.

For convenient adjustment of the table 20, it is mounted on a cross bar being secured thereto by screws 62. The cross bar 60 is pivotally attached near the ends of the table 20 to the arms of a yoke 64 which is rockably mounted between centers 66, 68 secured to the vertical plate 12. The yoke 64 has a leg 70 which extends downward so that by moving the lower end of the leg toward or from the vertical plate 12, the yoke can be rocked to shift the table 20 toward or from the surface of the roll 16. For this purpose a shaft '72 extends loosely through a hole in the leg 70. The shaft 72 has a screw-threaded end portion in threaded engagement with a hole through the plate 12. A handle 74 at the other end of the shaft provides convenient means for turning it to impart slow adjustment movement to the leg 70. Lugs 76, 78 on the shaft on either side of the leg 70 bear against the leg when the shaft advances axially in one direction or the other when turned. To limit the travel of the table 20 in both directions, adjustable stop elements 80, 82 are mounted on a stud 84 which extends out from the plate 12 through a hole in the leg 70.

In order to avoid leakage of cement past the under side of the table 20, a gasket of cellular material such as sponge rubber or an equivalent compressible material is mounted between the bottom of the table and the rim of the receptacle directly beneath. The unstressed thickness of the gasket 90 is a little greater than the distance between the bottom of the table 20 and the rim of the receptacle so that the gasket is compressed somewhat when in position. To protect the gasket from any possible chemical action thereon by the cement, the edge portion of the gasket adjacent to the roll is covered by a thin tape 92 of protective material such as a tetrafiuoroethylene polymer known as Teflon. A thin sheet metal retainer 94 is also mounted under the gasket on the rim of the receptacle with an upstanding flange 98 extending part way up the exposed face of the gasket. These parts form an effective seal beneath the table but the compressible gasket permits adjustive movements of the table toward and from the roll.

We claim:

1. In a machine for applying a liquid coating, a receptacle having a rim, a roll mounted in said receptacle to rotate on a horizontal axis, a table extending over a portion of said rim with an edge near to the surface of the roll, means for adjusting said table horizontally toward and from said roll to vary the clearance between the roll and the adjacent edge of the table and for holding said table in any adjusted position, a compressible cellular gasket strip compressed between said table and the portion of said rim under the table and subject to shearing distortion when the table is horizontally moved to vary said clearance, said gasket being of sponge rubber and having a thin Teflon tape covering the edge surface of said gasket nearest the roll, a sheet metal gasket retainer fixed to the receptacle and engaging said edge surface of the gasket, said means for adjusting the table comprising a rockable yoke having arms pivotally connected to said table near the end thereof and a downwardly extending leg, and means operable to impart slow adjustive movement to said leg whereby to rock said yoke and shift said table.

2. In a machine for applying a liquid coating, a receptacle having a rim, a roll mounted in said receptable to rotate on a horizontal axis, a table extending over a portion of said rim with an edge near to the surface of said roll, the margin of the top of said table adjacent to said roll being beveled, a block mounted on said table near each end thereof, an arbor rockably supported by said blocks above said table and parallel to the surface thereof, spring fingers carried by said arbor and extending downward to press against said beveled margin of the table near the edge thereof adjacent to said roll, and means for adjusting said arbor about its axis to vary the pressure of said fingers on said table, and means for horizontally adjusting said table and spring fingers as a unit toward and from said roll.

3. Mechanism as described in claim 2, and a sheet of synthetic resin underlying said spring fingers and carried by said arbor.

4. Mechanism as described in claim 2, and a cellular compressible gasket compressed between said table and the portion of said rim thereunder.

5. Mechanism as described in claim 2, said means for adjusting the table comprising a rockable yoke having arms pivotally connected to said table near the ends thereof, and a downwardly extending leg, and means for adjustably moving said leg to rock said yoke 6. In a machine for applying a liquid coating, a support including a vertical mounting plate, a receptacle secured to said plate near the top thereof, said receptacle having a rim, a roll mounted in said receptacle to rotate on a horizontal axis, a table bearing on the top edge of said plate and extending over a portion of said rim and having a beveled edge near to the surface of the roll, a block mounted on said table near each end thereof, an arbor rockably supported by said blocks above said table and parallel to the surface thereof, spring fingers secured to said arbor and extending down therefrom to press on the beveled edge of said table, means for adjusting the rotative angle of said arbor whereby to vary the pressure of said spring fingers on said table, means for adjustably moving said table and spring fingers as a unit horizontally toward and from said roll to vary the clearance between the rolland the adjacent edge of the table and for holding said table in any adjusted position, said table'rnoving means comprising a yoke rockably mounted on said vertical plate, said yoke having arms pivotally connected to said table near the ends thereof and a downwardly extending leg, and means for imparting adjustive movements to said leg whereby to adjust the position of said table relatively to said roll, and a gasket of compressible spongy material compressed between said table and the portion of said rim thereunder.

7. A machine as described in claim 6, and a piece of sheet nylon secured to said arbor under said spring fingers, the free edge of said piece being between the ends of said fingers and the surface of said table.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 396,711 1/1889 Richards.

666,268 1/ 1901 Hadaway.

998,221 7/ 1911 Wheeler 118248 1,162,291 11/1915 Kraut. 1,224,764 5/1917 Maltby 118261 X 1,325,623 12/1919 Cosgrove 118248 2,081,320 5/ 1937 Burgess. 2,082,348 6/1937 LeTarte 277288 X 2,097,428 11/ 1937 Bergstein. 2,597,976 5/ 1952 Cousins 277288 2,633,780 4/1953 Watson 118249 2,868,575 1/1959 Hawxhurst 277229 X 2,906,552 9/ 1959 White 277228 3,031,872 5/1962 Kusters. 3,165,425 1/ 1965 Parker 118252 FOREIGN PATENTS 16,012 1908 Great Britain.

OTHER REFERENCES Rudner, Fluorocarbons, Reinhold Publishing Corp., New York, 1958, pp. 196-218 relied on.

Floyd, Polyamide Resins, Reinhold Publishing Corp., New York, 1958, p. 218 relied on.

MORRIS KAPLAN, Primary Examiner. R. l NEVIUS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A MACHINE FOR APPLYING A LIQUID COATING, A RECEPTACLE HAVING A RIM, A ROLL MOUNTED IN SAID RECEPTACLE TO ROTATE ON A HORIZONTAL AXIS, A TABLE EXTENDING OVER A PORTION OF SAID RIM WITH AN EDGE NEAR TO THE SURFACE OF THE ROLL, MEANS FOR ADJUSTING SAID TABLE HORIZONTALLY TOWARD AND FROM SAID ROLL TO VARY THE CLEARANCE BETWEEN THE ROLL AND THE ADJACENT EDGE OF THE TABLE AND FOR HOLDING SAID TABLE IN ANY ADJUSTED POSITION, A COMPRESSIBLE CELLULAR GASKET STRIP COMPRESSED BETWEEN SAID TABLE AND THE PORTION OF SAID RIM UNDER THE TABLE AND SUBJECT TO SHEARING DISTORTION WHEN THE TABLE IS HORIZONTALLY MOVED TO VARY SAID CLEARANCE, SAID GASKET BEING OF SPONGE RUBBER AND HAVING A THIN TEFLON TAPE COVERING THE EDGE SURFACE OF SAID GASKET NEAREST THE ROLL, A SHEET METAL GASKET RETAINER FIXED TO THE RECEPTACLE AND ENGAGING SAID EDGE SURFACE OF THE GASKET, SAID MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE TABLE COMPRISING A ROCKABLE YOKE HAVING ARMS PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO SAID TABLE NEAR THE END THEREOF AND A DOWNWARDLY EXTENDING LEG, AND MEANS OPERABLE TO IMPART SLOW ADJUSTIVE MOVEMENT TO SAID LEG WHEREBY TO ROCK SAID YOKE AND SHIFT SAID TABLE. 